Peak of Interest
by GlamaHart32
Summary: He secretly has a thing for her. She has a boyfriend, but what other people don't know, is that he is battling his own demons. Will she stay with him through it all or will an unlikely friend help her out and become more than friends?
1. Chapter 1

Walking backstage, Natalya was clutching the bag of ice that the trainers had wrapped around her ribs. She could not believe how much a botched moonsault could hurt; instantly knocking the wind out of her. Knowing that as soon as she would walk into the Divas locker room, Eve Torres would bombard her with apologies, and she just was not in the mood to put up with it. Cautiously walking into the locker room that she shared with the other Divas, she looked around and saw that Eve was not in there. In fact, none of the Divas were there.

"That's odd." Natalya thought to herself as she walked over to her things and started stuffing clothes into her duffel bag.

Sneaking out the door, Natalya made her way down the hallway, opposite of the Gorilla Position. Walking into a seemingly empty room, she sat down on the bench and rested her head against the wall; closing her eyes. She let out a long sigh, and instantly regretted it. The pain in her ribs became unbearable, causing her to wince. Choking back tears, her hands instantly went to the ice pack.

"Son of a bitch!" she muttered.

"Such a foul mouth on such a pretty woman."

Hearing that gruff accent caused Natalya to freeze. Her heart was pounding, as she slowly opened her eyes. Off to the left sat a rather large, handsome man. His usually slicked back hair was a mess from his match earlier in the evening. He was unlacing his wrestling boots and taking off his wrist tape. Natalya couldn't help but to let her eyes roam over his body; noticing for the first time, just how muscular he really was.

"See something that you like?"

Hearing his voice again snapped Natalya out of her inappropriate thoughts, as she looked into his greenish/ grey eyes.

"H-huh, wh-what?" she stuttered, shaking her head.

"You were obviously checking out my body, so I asked if you saw something that you liked."

Natalya blushed, realizing that she was caught staring.

"I'm sorry Wade; I thought this room was empty. I'll just go and find somewhere else to change." Said Natalya, as she stood up and bent over to pick up her duffel bag, wincing as a jolt of pain travelled around her chest. She fell to her knees and just waited for it to pass.

Natalya felt a comforting hand on the small of her back. Through the curtain of blonde and pink hair that shielded her face, she could see that Wade had dropped to his knees next to her. Seeing the expression on his face, she could tell he was worried.

"Nattie, are you okay? What's wrong?"

"I'm fine, it's nothing really." Natalya lied as she tried to stand back up, only to end up doubling over as pain shot through her ribs again.

"Bullshit."

"What did you just say?" Natalya was taken aback hearing the six foot seven Brit call her out like that.

Seeing the shocked expression that spread across the Canadian beauty's face, made Wade chuckle, something he did not do too often.

"What happened to cause you to wince whenever you reach for your duffel?"

"Did you not see my match?"

"No, I was in the training room, getting checked out after taking that roundhouse kick to the head from Justin Gabriel. Turns out, I'm just as hard headed as everyone thinks that I am."

"Funny."

"I try. So tell me, what happened?"

"At the end of my match with Eve, she botched her moonsault, and landed knees first into my ribcage. It knocked the wind out of me and I was unable to kick out the way the match was booked. Afterwards, I had to be helped to the back and the trainers told me that the impact her knees had bruised my ribs."

"That sounds absolutely painful. Is there anything that I can do to help you out at all?" Wade asked as he gently helped her up to sit on the bench.

"Nah, I think that I will be fine when the pain lessens."

"Well, you are more than welcome to stay and hide out in here. I'm just going to jump in the shower real quick. That means no peaking!"

"As if!" was the only comeback that Natalya could think of. Wade laughed out loud as he grabbed his towel and sauntered over to the shower stalls, taking one last look at the third generation Diva sitting in his locker room.

As Wade was walking away, Natalya could not help but to watch him leave. Once he was out of sight, she shook her head; she could not and should not be having these kinds of thoughts about another man. Especially since her six month anniversary with Randy was coming up soon. Seeing that the Brit was out of sight, she rummaged through her duffel and found her street clothes. Quickly changing into a pair of light wash jeans and a hot pink halter top, she picked up her shoes, duffel bag and then left the room.


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as Natalya walked through the door of the hotel room that she shared with Randy, she was instantly scooped up into a hug and twirled around.

"Nattie, are you okay?"

"Randy, you're hurting my ribs." Natalya said, wincing in pain.

"Oh shit, I'm sorry. What did the trainers say?" Randy asked as he set her back down on her feet, but kept his hands on her hips.

"I just have a few bruised ribs. Nothing major, just a little bit of pain."

"Is there anything that I can do to make you feel more comfortable?"

"Uh…can you get some ice from the machine so I can wrap it around my ribs?"

"Of course I will anything for you." Randy said as he leaned down and gently placed a kiss upon her lips. With a smile, he walked over and grabbed the ice bucket and then left the room.

When the door closed, Natalya could finally exhale. She couldn't believe that he had been drinking again, when he promised that he would stop. Every time that she would smell the alcohol on his breath, her mind would instantly think back to what happened two months prior.

_Randy was down in the hotel bar, throwing back drinks and walking down_

_memory lane. He couldn't believe how much his life had changed in such a _

_short amount of time. His wife divorced him and took his daughter away. He _

_didn't know where she went; all he knew is that he would send an alimony_

_check to his lawyer and then it would be sent to her. The only way that_

_he knew how to dull the pain of what was going on in his life was to drink._

_It had been almost a year since the divorce was finalized, but it was still _

_wearing down on him, despite the fact that he had somewhat moved on. _

_He was now dating Natalya Neidhart, a fellow third generation wrestler._

_After the news of his divorce made its way throughout the WWE, Natalya_

_was one of the first people to try and comfort him about it. She had _

_stayed with him in his hotel room at all times of the night, just talking. It was_

_after all the time they had spent together, that he realized just how beautiful she _

_really was. The way that her long blonde and pink hair would cascade down her _

_back. The way she would laugh and then that smile that would follow,_

_made Randy smile to himself. Finally one night of talking, he asked her if_

_she wanted to grab something to eat. From then on, they were practically_

_inseparable, except when he would drink. This was something that he _

_like to do by himself. This night at the bar, he knew he had had too many,_

_but he didn't care. When the bartender cut him off, Randy cussed him out, but _

_then made his way up to Natalya's room; hoping to get into her pants. When _

_she opened the door, her face instantly lit up seeing him standing there,_

_but when she smelled the alcohol, the smile vanished._

"_Randy, I think you should go back to your room and sleep this all off."_

_ "Shut up, bitch. You know why I'm here, and you are going to give it to me."_

_ "No, I'm not giving you anything while you're in this state. Goodnight Randy." Natalya said as she went to close the door._

_Randy was stronger than her, and he used it to his advantage. He wedged his _

_foot in the doorway before she could close it all the way and powered his _

_way into the room. Natalya pushed herself up against the wall, afraid of what_

_would happen next. He closed the door and started to advance in her _

_direction. Frozen with fear, she couldn't move. Randy grabbed her roughly_

_by the arms, dragged her over to the bed and threw her down. He climbed _

_on top of her and she tried to fight her way out from underneath him, without_

_success. He ripped off her sweatpants and forced himself into her. She _

_cried out in pain and still tried to push him off of her. This only angered him _

_more. Without thinking, he swung his hand and slapped her. The sound was _

_deafening and Natalya quickly reached up with a hand and covered her face._

_Tears started to form in her eyes and she remained silent. Randy made quick _

_work and once he was satisfied, he collapsed on the bed next to her, passed out._

_Natalya stayed awake all night, crying to herself. She couldn't believe what had _

_just happened. Around dawn the next morning was when she was finally able _

_to drift off to sleep. Not long after she fell asleep, Randy awoke to a throbbing _

_headache. He looked over at Natalya and noticed the welt that remained on _

_her cheek and the bruises on both of her arms and he was appalled. He knew_

_that he was the cause of them. He carefully got out of the bed, put his jeans _

_back on and quietly walked out of her room. He knew that he had to make it_

_up to her somehow. Down stairs in the lobby, he hailed a cab and directed the_

_cabby to take him to the nearest jewelry store. Arriving, he walked in and picked_

_out a ring with a princess cut pink sapphire that was surrounded by black_

_diamonds. He knew that it was perfect. Once back at the hotel, he ordered room service and _

_waited until it arrived. When it did, he wheeled the cart inside and set everything_

_up. Walking over to Natalya, he gently shook her awake. She was guarded_

_he could tell. Seeing Randy standing over her, she moved over_

_to the other side of the bed. He quickly apologized to her and gave her the_

_ring. Wearily, she opened the box and gasped. Putting the ring on her right hand,_

_she smiled at Randy and kissed him, forgiving him for what he had done._

Twirling the ring on her finger, Natalya walked over to the bed and waited for Randy to come back with the ice. When he returned, she hoped that with her injured, he wouldn't continue to drink and would take care of her. Man was she wrong.


	3. Chapter 3

Half an hour later, Randy stumbled his way back into their room. Natalya's heart sank; he was wasted. To top everything off, he had forgotten the ice.

"Hey there sexy lady." Randy slurred his words, causing them to run together.

"Where the hell have you been? I've been waiting for you to get back." Natalya asked, annoyed.

"I ran into Cody and Ted. We went downstairs and had a few drinks. Is there a problem?"

"Yeah, I ask you to do one little thing, like going to get ice for my ribs, but instead you went and got drunk with your little buddies."

Natalya felt her blood start to boil. She knew that she had to get out of there before something was said or done that they would both regret. Carefully swinging her legs off the bed, she stood to her feet. Grabbing her duffel bag and her purse, she walked towards the door.

"Just where the hell do you think you are going?" Randy asked, suddenly becoming more aware.

"I'm going to stay with Beth for tonight and maybe tomorrow. I really don't feel like putting up with your drunken shenanigans tonight. Goodnight Randy."

Reaching for the door handle, Natalya was instantly swung back around. Standing there face to face with Randy, she knew that he wanted to intimidate her; but she was a Hart and they never backed down.

"No, you're going to stay here with me."

"Randy, let go of me, now!" Natalya demanded.

Randy continued to stare deep into her eyes. Trying to get him to let go, she tugged her arm back, but he wouldn't relinquish his grip. Randy flashed his sinister smile and Natalya knew that she had to do something. Pulling back her right arm, balling her hand into a fist, she threw her weight into it and connected with him in the temple. The punch stunned him long enough for him to let go of her other arm. When he uncovered his face, Natalya could see a small gash on his forehead. Looking down at her right hand, she gasped. She punched him with the ring on her hand. Randy slowly turned to look at her, blood trickling down his face which was red with anger.

Before Natalya could say or do anything, Randy lunged and tackled her. She gasped in pain as her ribs seared. Her head bounced off the doorknob, and she fell limp underneath Randy's weight. When he stood up, he immediately knew something was wrong.

"Nattie, are you okay?" he asked, even though he knew that she was not going to answer him.

Panic was starting to set in, as he tried to figure out what he should do. Stripping the bags from her arms, Randy gingerly lifted her up in both arms and walked her over to the bed. After laying her down, he began to pace back and forth, hands on his head.

"What have I done?" he asked himself.

Thinking it would be for the best; Randy scribbled a note and then packed his suitcase. Placing the note on the bedside table, he left the room with one last, sorrowful look at Natalya.

The ringing grew louder, causing her head to pound even more. Groaning, she brought a hand to her head as she sat up. Cringing at the light when she opened her eyes, Natalya started looking for the origin of the annoying sound. Finally locating her cell phone, she pressed the 'on' button and quietly answered the phone.

"Nattie where the hell are you?" Beth shouted from the other end of the line.

Natalya pulled the phone away from her ear and cursed under her breath.

"Damn Beth, you don't have to yell. What do you mean where am I? I'm in my hotel room." She asked, confused.

"Have you seen what time it is? You were supposed to be here at the arena an hour and a half ago. I've covered for you, but I don't know how much longer I can. We have that mandatory meeting in forty-five minutes and then we have a match. It's you and I against Eve and Tamina."

Hearing that she was late, she glanced at the clock and jumped out of bed. Wincing as pain shot through her chest, Natalya started scrambling around, collecting her gear.

"Son of a bitch!" she muttered into the receiver, as the pain worsened.

"Are you okay Nattie? How are your ribs feeling?" Beth asked, worried about her friend.

"They still kill, but not as bad as my head right now."

"Did you have too much fun with Randy last night?"

"What are you implying Beth?" Natalya asked with a smile.

"I've seen how the two of you act around each other. It's like you are two lovesick puppies. It's kinda cute."

"Well thanks, but actually to tell you the truth, I can't remember what happened last night."

Natalya stopped what she was doing and tried to remember what happened last night. She remembered that Randy went to get her ice, but then came back reeking of alcohol and stumbling all over himself. She knew that they had fought, but that was the last thing she remembered.

"Nattie, are you still there?" Beth hollered.

"Uh…yeah. I'll be at the arena in about twenty minutes." Natalya said as she hung up, without waiting for her response.

"What the hell happened to me last night?" she wondered.

The pounding started to get worse, and she placed a hand to the site of the pain. Her fingers grazed over a slight bump on the back of her head. Gasping, things started to comeback. Something about a tackle and a doorknob confused her. She shook her head slightly and started back to packing her duffel. When her bag was packed, she turned to grab her phone charger and saw the note. Glancing at the clock, she stuffed it into her sweatshirt, planning on reading it later. Finally throwing her hair up to cover the bump, she headed out the door.


	4. Chapter 4

Natalya arrived at the arena just in time for the meeting, quickly taking a seat across from Beth. She tried her hardest to pay attention to what was being said, but all she could think about was trying to piece the last twelve hours back together. Before she knew it, Vince thanked everyone who attended and excused them. Coming back down to reality, she stood up and walked to the door. As soon as she crossed the threshold back into the hallway, she was immediately grabbed around the wrist and pulled through the crowd. Once out of the throng of people, Natalya saw that it was Beth who had grabbed her.

"It's about damn time you got here! What the hell is up with you?"

"Nothing, have you seen Randy? I have to talk to him." Natalya said, obviously distracted as she began to scan the hallway for Randy.

"No I haven't. Is everything okay between the two of you?" Beth asked as they walked into the catering area.

"Yeah, everything is fine. Why do you ask?"

"Well for one, you are never late, especially for a mandatory meeting. Two, you always arrive with Randy and three; you never look like you just rolled out of bed. So what gives?"

Finding an empty table away from the other superstars and divas, they sat down. Taking a deep breath, Natalya started in.

"I've just had a rough twenty-four hours. With my injury, walking into an occupied locker room and with Randy's drinking, my mind has been in about twenty different places at once as of late."

"Whoa! Randy is drinking again? Since when?"

"Since last night apparently. He was supposed to go and get me ice but when he came back, he was wasted."

"I thought he swore alcohol off after what happened last time?"

Of course Natalya told Beth what happened that night, she was her best friend after all. But she did spare her some of the details.

"Yeah, so did I."

"So what happened? And what's this about an occupied locker room? Was that why you weren't in the Divas locker room after your match?"

"Yes, I didn't feel like hearing all of Eve's apologies, so I went and found a spare locker room."

"But, I thought you said that someone was already in there? I'm confused." Beth stated as she leaned back in her chair.

Natalya chuckled, well the best that she could without hurting her ribs, and started in on what happened. As she talked, Beth's eyes grew round.

"You walked into Wade Barrett's room? Weren't you scared at all? I mean when he was part of the Nexus, he attacked the Dynasty."

"That was like two years ago and no, I wasn't scared. He caught me staring at his body and started to poke fun at me. When I went to leave, pain shot through my ribs and he seemed genuinely concerned about me. It was rather refreshing actually."

Natalya looked away, blushing slightly, thinking back to how nice it felt to have a friendly touch. All of the sudden, Beth snapped her fingers in Natalya's face.

"Earth to Natalya!"

"Huh? Oh, sorry."

"No worries, so what happened when Randy came back to your room wasted?"

"I don't remember."

"Not even a little bit?"

"Well, I think we fought, but to be honest we have been fighting a lot lately. So I can't be sure if we did last night or not." Natalya said as she ran a hand through her pony tail, wincing when she grazed the knot.

"What was that? Are your ribs still bothering you? Because if they are, I'm sure that we can change our match."

"It's not my ribs, I woke up with this huge knot on the back of my head."

"Let me see." Beth said, motioning for Natalya to lean forward. When Beth saw it, she gasped.

"What's wrong?"

"Nattie, I think you should get this checked out. You could have a concussion."

"But what about our match?"

"I don't give a damn about the match. Your health is more important than a stupid twelve second squash anyway."

Natalya finally agreed and got up from their table. She was glad when Beth got up and walked out with her.

"Beth, your intuition proved to be right. Natalya, you do have a minor concussion and you will not be able to compete this evening." Dave, the head WWE trainer said, then walked away.

"I'm sorry Nattie. I know how much you wanted to get back in the ring with Eve." Beth said with a smirk.

"I think that I'll live. I guess I should go and tell Stephanie that I'm not cleared."

"Actually, let me go with you. I have an idea on how to play this out."

"I know that look, and I'm not sure if I like it." Natalya said, walking out of the trainer's room with the Glamazon.

"Making her way to the ring, she is the Divas Champion, The Glamazon, Beth Phoenix!" Justin Robert's voice boomed throughout the arena.

The crowd was mixed about their feelings, but most of them were booing her.

"Divas Champion forever!" she yelled as she sat on top of the turnbuckle after making her way down to the ring.

After her backflip, she handed the belt to the referee and waited. New Foundation blared through the speakers. The crowd showed Natalya more love than they did for Beth.

"Next, her tag team partner, Natalya!" Justin boomed, barely able to be heard over the roar of the crowd.

They all waited, but no one came out onto the stage. Her theme song was cut off and the Titiantron cut to a scuffle going on backstage. It showed Natalya being beaten down by none other than Eve and Tamina. Referees finally made their way the three Divas, pulling the two off of the Canadian. As the camera started to fade out, it showed Natalya apparently knocked out. The in-ring camera showed Beth, who was furiously pacing back and forth in the ring.

John Laurinaitis made his way out onto the stage, accompanied by David Otunga. The crowd booed heavily.

"Beth, seeing as how you are now without a tag team partner, I am forced to cancel your match." He croaked into the microphone.

This caused him to draw even more boos from the crowd. Beth just shook her head and walked over to the ring apron and demanded a microphone for herself.

"No Johnny, you are not going to cancel my match right after seeing my best friend being attacked. You can either change the stipulations to a handicap match, where there is a referee to pull me off of those two, or you can just wait until I get to the locker room. It's your choice now." Beth practically shouted, going red in the face.

Throwing down the microphone, she got into a fighting stance to wait. John talked it over with David and seemed to agree with him.

"Have it your way Beth. Eve and Tamina, please make your way to the ring."

Eve's theme song hit and they both made their way down the ramp to the ring. While Tamina looked somewhat confident, Eve looked downright terrified. Beth was still seething, causing the referee to hold her back while her opponents climbed into the ring. Eve went straight to their corner, letting Tamina take on Beth first.

"Ring the Bell!" Scott Armstrong yelled to start the match.

Beth quickly went on the offensive by clotheslining Tamina hard. When she stood up, Beth put her in a headlock then hip tossed her to the mat. Tamina locked her legs around Beth's neck only to be outdone when Beth performed a picture perfect kip up, something that Natalya had taught her to do. The crowd started to get into the match and backed Beth. Tamina then made the hot tag to a terrified Eve. Slowly climbing under the second rope, she made her way to the center of the ring. Beth let an evil smirk cross her face, then charged at Eve. She hit the Latina with a clothesline so hard, she flipped over backwards and landed on her stomach. Beth pulled her up by her hair and hit the GlamSlam. Giving Tamina a glare, daring her to reenter the ring, covered Eve for the three count. The crowd went nuts for the finish. As Beth climbed out of the ring with her title, she beamed with a satisfied grin, making her way backstage.

Walking through the curtain, Beth was immediately enveloped into a hug from behind. Turning, she saw Natalya standing there with a smile on her face.

"That looked great! If I hadn't know that the match was last minute, I would have thought you three planned that all out."

"Thanks Nattie, anything to help a friend out."

"I appreciate it greatly."

Beth was about to push Natalya to talk about how she really got her concussion, but stopped when Natalya spotted Randy.

"Randy, wait! I'll see you later Beth." Natalya said as she ran after Randy, who had just walked into catering.

"Nattie, what the hell is going on?" Beth whispered, worry showing on her face as she walked to her locker room to change and wait for Natalya.


	5. Chapter 5

Natalya finally caught up with Randy when he walked into his locker room to get ready for his match that was due to start in fifteen minutes.

"Randy, I have to talk to you. It's important."

"I have to get ready and stretch. It's gonna have to wait until after the show." He replied without even turning around to look at her.

"No it can't wait. I need answers and you are damn well going to give them to me. Now turn around and look at me dammit!"

Sighing heavily, he slowly turned around to face Natalya, but kept his eyes on the ground.

"What do you want to know?"

"What the hell happened last night? I remember you coming back to the room drunk and that we had an argument, but everything after that is all fuzzy."

"Nattie, I didn't mean for it to happen, I just snapped. I don't know what came over me. I'm so sorry."

"What are you sorry for? Why did you snap? What happened?"

Randy rubbed his face and remained silent. Trying to find his words, Natalya could tell that he was conflicted.

"I'm sorry that I went with the boys and drank when I told you I wouldn't after what happened the last time. When you said you were leaving to go and stay with Beth, I panicked and I sort of tackled you. Your head hit the doorknob and then you wouldn't wake back up. Oh god, Nattie I'm so sorry." Randy rambled, throwing out all of this information going a hundred miles an hour.

Natalya couldn't believe what she was hearing. It was all starting to make sense as he explained. He promised the first time that it wouldn't happen again, but like most things that came out of his mouth, he had lied. Randy finally had the courage to look up at the woman he had hurt and his heart sank. The way she was looking at him made him realize things would never be the same. Closing the space between them, he reached for her hands but she quickly moved away from him and closer to the door.

"Nattie, please say something."

"You know what? Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me."

"And what does that mean?"

"It means we're done. I'm sick and tired of this. I'm tired of being afraid of which side of you I am going to get when you come back to our room. And I'm sick of feeling like this relationship is one sided."

"Wait, can't we just sit down and talk this out before making any rash decisions?" Randy pleaded.

"No, I'm done with this, I'm done with us. Good-bye Randy." Natalya said as she turned and walked out of Randy's locker room.

Once back out in the hallway, Natalya leaned up against the door, sliding down to a seated position and let the tears fall. She had truly loved Randy, but she was tired of the lies and the abuse.

"Hey, is everything okay?"

Quickly wiping her eyes, Natalya looked up and saw Wade Barrett standing in front of her. Nodding her head, she tried to force a smile.

"Bullshit. It's obvious that something is wrong. So tell me, what's wrong?" he asked as he squatted down in front of her.

"I just broke up with Randy."

"What? Why did you do that?"

"He-He's been sleeping with someone else." Natalya lied.

Why was she now protecting the man that had caused her so much pain, physically and mentally, she had no idea. But telling Wade that Randy was cheating on her seemed more believable than him abusing her.

"That bastard, just wait until I get my hands on him. He will regret ever being unfaithful to you when I'm done with him." Wade seethed as he stood up and started to pound on Randy's door.

Worried, Natalya shot up from her place on the ground, placing her hands against Wade's chest. As she gently started to push him backwards, she could see the anger in his eyes, yet he was willing to follow her. Reaching the end of the hallway rather quickly, Natalya could hear Randy's door finally open.

"What the hell Nattie, why did you push me away like that? I was going to kick that pathetic waste of skin's ass."

"Because it's not worth it Wade. I appreciate you feeling like you need to protect me from the big bad wolf, but I think I can handle it on my own."

"Are you sure that you are okay? I know what it feels like to be cheated on and it isn't fun. I'm here for you to talk to if you need me."

"Thanks Wade, I may take you up on that offer one of these days. Right now I'm just going to go and vent to Beth." Natalya said as she let a genuine smile form across her face.

"Oh that's a good idea; let the best friend get ahold of the cheating ex-boyfriend before another superstar."

"Well which one do you think is more painful; the GlamSlam or Wasteland?"

"Never having been on the receiving end of either one of them, I can't really say. I know that they both look vicious when executed with brute force, so I'm going to say both."

"Sounds like a plan to me. Then add in the Sharpshooter for the icing on the cake."

"Let's make it happen!" Wade said hopefully.

"Maybe next week when my ribs don't hurt as bad."

"It's a deal, and I'm going to hold you to it."

"I wouldn't have it any other way, Nattie."

"Thanks Wade."

"For what?"

"Making me smile when I thought my whole world was crumbling down around me."

"Anytime. I'll see you around." Wade said as he turned and walked down the hall towards his own locker room.

Walking in the opposite direction, past Randy's locker room, Natalya made her way to the Divas locker room. Thoughts were running through her mind, not allowing her to think straight. First she was thinking about how her relationship with Randy had gone down the drain after all that they had been through together. Second, she was thinking about how Wade just happened to be there when she was losing her way.

Before she knew it, Natalya had walked the length of the arena and was about to pass the locker room. Walking inside, she expected to see the locker room empty, but as soon as the door closed, she was bombarded with questions.

"Natalya, what the hell is going on with you and Randy?"

Almost jumping out of her skin, Natalya turned and saw Beth sitting on the couch, still in her ring gear. Seeing the look on her face, Natalya gulped and prepared to weather the storm.


	6. Chapter 6

"He did what?" Beth yelled as she shot up from her spot on the couch and walked straight up to her best friend.

"That first night that he started drinking, he…" Natalya started to repeat, only to be interrupted by Beth waving her hands to stop.

"I heard you the first time, so there's no need to repeat it. Why did you tell me after it happened?"

"I don't know. I was just terrified after it happened. When I woke up the next morning, he brought me breakfast in bed and bought me that beautiful pink and black ring."

"Nattie, that doesn't mean shit! He physically abused you and he raped you! He should be in a jail cell, rotting right now."

"I couldn't have done that to him."

"Why the hell not?"

"Because I love him! Er, I mean I loved him."

"So if this happened a while ago, what caused you to finally break up with him?" Beth asked as she shook her head, not believing how naïve the Canadian was being.

"After the show yesterday, I went back to the hotel to relax and forget about my terrible match. Randy bombarded me as soon as the door closed and wanted to know if there was anything he could do for me. I asked him to get me some ice; he agreed and as soon as he left, I could finally breathe. He reeked of alcohol."

"What made him start to drink again? What happened when he came back?"

"I don't know what caused him start back up again; I never got a chance to ask him. When he finally came back, half an hour later, he was hammered. To make matters worse, he didn't even bring the ice." Natalya said with a slight chuckle.

"Nattie, that is not funny. I can feel the big blow up coming, so just get to it!"

"When he came back drunk, that was the last straw. I grabbed my bags and told him that I was going to be staying with you for a couple of nights. When I got to the door, he grabbed my arm and whipped me around, demanding that I stay with him. I told him no and I demanded that he let me go and when he didn't, I punched him."

"You punched him? Damn girl, I never thought you had it in you! So tell me, was it a left of a right hook?"

"It was a right hook." Natalya said as she raised her hand, showing her busted knuckles and the ring Randy had bought her after that first night.

Beth's eyes grew large as she covered her mouth and gasped. Natalya lowered her hand and just nodded.

"I'm betting that he didn't take that too well."

"Not at all; it made him let me go, and when he removed his hand from his temple, blood was trickling down his face. Then, from what he confessed to me about that night, a switch inside of him flipped and he tackled me, causing my head to bounce off the doorknob. I guess it knocked me out and I crumbled underneath him. I don't remember much."

"Oh my god, Nattie! That is terrible. When I see him, he's gonna be sorry that he ever touched you wrong!" Beth announced as she headed towards the door. Natalya saw the deadly look on her face and knew that she had to act quickly.

"Beth, wait! What are you going to do?"

Natalya was able to grab ahold of Beth's arm before she made it out the door. The Glamazon tried to keep walking, but Natalya stood her ground.

"Nattie, please let go."

Beth slowly turned to face her fellow blonde. Her jaw was set tight and her eyes were shooting daggers.

"I'm not going to until you tell me what your plan is."

"I really don't have a concrete plan! I was just going to go up to him and punch him myself."

"I can't let you do that. I have a better idea though. One that will allow you to punch him, Glam Slam him and not get arrested for assault."

"And what is this idea that you have? It sounds pretty intriguing, especially since you said I wouldn't get arrested for it." Beth said with a grin as she walked back over to the couch with Natalya.

"So after I broke up with Randy, I was crying and a complete mess. All of the sudden, Wade walks up and we start talking." Natalya started before Beth interrupted.

"Whoa, since when did you become so chummy with Wade Barrett?"

"I was getting to that part."

"Sorry, please continue."

"Anyway, he wanted to know what was wrong. I told him that I caught Randy cheating on me and that I broke up with him."

"Why did you tell him that instead of the truth? Why are you so adamant about protecting that piece of scum?" Beth interrupted again, her voice rising up an octave.

"I told him Randy cheated on me because I don't want the whole damn locker room knowing that he raped me and knocked me out, okay? I'm not protecting him per se; I just don't want everyone knowing."

"Ugh…fine! What did Wade say to that? Did he buy that excuse?"

"He did actually and he was livid. He stood up from his spot on the ground next to me and pounded on Randy's locker room door."

"What was he going to do when the door opened?"

"I pushed him down the hall away from the door. He said that that he was going to make Randy regret ever screwing around behind my back. I told him that it wasn't worth it and that I could handle it myself. He then said he knew what it was like to be cheated on, so he was there if I needed to talk. I was about to take him up on that offer, but I felt that I should vent to you first."

"Awe, I feel so damn special now!" Beth mocked, placing a hand over her heart.

"Do you want to hear this idea or not?"

"Yes of course I do! I'm sorry for my sarcastic ways."

"Yeah, sure. Actually it was sort of based off what Wade had said. He said something about the best friend getting to the cheater before another superstar. I suggest that we go to Stephanie and ask for another match with Tamina and Eve. We request a six person, mixed tag team match with Wade on our side and Randy on the other side. That way you get to Glam Slam him after Wade gives him Wasteland."

"Nattie, that sounds like a great idea. If Wade is up for it, then I am all for it too!"

"Good, I'll double check with him, and then I'll go straight to Stephanie."

"While you do that, I'm going to shower, change and then you and I are going out. I'm cashing in my rain check from last night, because you need a good night out!"

"Deal, I will see you in a few minutes." Natalya said with a smile as she walked out and headed to find Wade's locker room.

After wandering around the maze-like halls for five minutes and getting nowhere, she finally stopped and asked a stagehand. Following his directions, she made it to his room and knocked. Within a minute, the door opened and there stood Wade with a towel wrapped around his waist and water dripping from his hair.

"Hey Nattie, what's up? Did you change your mind about talking?"

"Not quite, but I do have something that I want to talk to you about."

"Sure, would you like to come in?"

"I would love too, but I have another person to catch when I'm done here."

"Okay, yeah. Then talk away."

"I was thinking of a way that you, Beth and I could seek some revenge on Randy. I plan on going to Stephanie asking for a six person, mixed tag match; the three of us against Eve, Tamina and Randy. Are you in?"

"Are you kidding me? I am absolutely in. This is going to be great. That twit won't know what hit him." Wade agreed with a huge grin making its presence.

"Alright, I will let you know what Steph says."

"Great, I'll be awaiting your call about it."

Natalya was about to turn and walk away when another thought popped into her head. Turning back, she caught the door before he fully closed it. Seeing her standing there, he gave her a questioning look.

"Do you have plans tonight?"

"I do actually. I have a date…"

For some odd reason, her heart sank slightly.

"…with my bed and pillow. Why, what did you have in mind?" he asked chuckling at his own joke.

Natalya instantly felt dumb for feeling that way. She then wandered why she got that feeling in the first place.

"Beth and I are going out, probably to a bar or a club. Would you like to tag along?"

"I would be delighted to. Meet you in the hotel lobby at about twelve thirty."

"Sounds good, see you then."

With one last smile, Natalya set off in search of Stephanie's office. Rounding the corner down from Wade's locker room, Natalya felt someone grab her hand. Then all of the sudden, she was whipped around and pushed into a corner.

"What the hell? Get off of me…Randy?"

When she looked up, she was surprised to see the Viper standing in front of her, blocking her into a corner.

"What do you want?" she asked, pulling her hand away and pushing him off of her.

"Can we talk, please?" he pleaded.

"You have five minutes. Talk fast."


	7. Chapter 7

The look on Randy's face made Natalya nervous. She couldn't tell what he was thinking or how he was going to act. As he thought about what he was going to say, she kept her defenses and guard up.

"First of all, why were you talking to that arrogant douchebag Wade?""

There it was, his jealousy starting to rear its ugly head.

"If you must know, we were talking about the possibility of a future match."

"There is no way in hell I'm going to let you have a match against him! If he so much as lays a single finger on you, I will break all ten of them!"

"Who are you to say who I can or can't wrestle against? The last time that I checked, Stephanie was the last person to sign off on a match. Besides, it wasn't about Wade versus me; I was asking him if he would be interested in being my mixed tag partner."

"Why would you ask him when you have me?"

"Two reasons why; the first being that you and I are no longer together. Therefor I don't need or want you in my corner. The second reason is because you will be on the opposing team."

Natalya could see Randy's mind churn over everything she had just said. She had to admit it to herself; she was being kind of rude and bitchy towards him. The more that she thought about it, the more she realized that he deserved it.

"Then who did you have in mind for my partner?" Randy tried to ask calmly, but the vain in his forehead betrayed him by throbbing.

"Partners, as in more than one person. It's going to be you, Eve and Tamina against myself, Beth and Wade."

"Nattie, this is bullshit and you know it! Stephanie will never agree to this sort of match. The Divas division is basically non-existent and you expect her to put four in a match with two top-tier Superstars? You are more delusional that A.J. is."

Randy's comment really got under her skin. She knew that the company would never give the Divas the exposure that they deserved and worked so hard for. Just as she thought about slapping the taste out of his mouth, another thought popped into her head.

"I bet to you that I can persuade Stephanie to let us have this match."

"I'll take that bet. When she shoots you down, like I know that she will, you have to agree to have dinner with me so that we can talk."

"Fine and when she agrees, after the match happens I want nothing to do with you. I want you to leave me alone."

Randy clenched his teeth and set his jaw. Mulling over the deal, he finally agreed. He moved away so that Natalya could get out of the corner. Without another word spoken, he followed her towards Stephanie's office. He really hoped that she would say no; he needed to convince Natalya to take him back. He snapped out of his own little world when Natalya halted in front of him and knocked loudly on the door. Hearing that they were granted access, he let out a huge sigh and walked in behind the woman he loved.

"Absolutely, that sounds like a great idea!" Stephanie exclaimed when Natalya finished speaking.

"What? You can't be serious about all of this!"

Randy couldn't believe what he had just heard. Stephanie just sat there nonchalantly staring back at the Viper. He turned his attention towards Natalya. She was looking at Stephanie with a smug grin on her face.

"I am very serious about this Randy. What better way to showcase two feuds, a new one and an old one, than a mixed tag team match? Think about it for a second; the chemistry between you and Wade is red hot right now. This would also interject Natalya and Beth so that they can get their 'revenge' for Nattie's attack."

"But they're Divas! Why not just have a regular tag team match? Why should I be involved?"

"For your information, we are trying to rebuild a dying division here. Just because they are Divas doesn't mean anything. In fact, I think that three of the Divas that are going to be in this match could out wrestle you any day of the week. As for the fourth, well she is a blue belt and could flat out kick your ass."

Natalya tried her hardest to keep her laughter to herself, but ended up failing. She had never heard anyone standup for the Divas like that and had never heard anyone talk to Randy like that before. She was impressed.

"So does this mean you are going to sign off on the match?" Natalya asked once she regained her breath, already knowing the answer.

"Not only am I signing off on this goldmine match, but I'm going to do two other things. The first is that this match will not be scripted. I want the audience to see the emotion and feel the passion. The second is that I'm making this the main event on SmackDown for next week."

"You have got to be shitting me!" Randy groaned, knowing he was beyond screwed.

"I am not 'shitting' you and I never kid Mr. Orton. Ms. Neidhart, thank you for coming to me with this great idea. I will see you both on Tuesday evening and I hope that you all enjoy your time off this weekend." Stephanie said with a beaming smile as the two wrestlers stood to their feet.

"Thank you so much Steph! I promise that you will not be disappointed." Natalya said all giddy as she shook her boss's hand and quickly walked out of the office.

Without waiting around for Randy so that she could gloat, she bolted back to her locker room. Opening up the door, she almost tackled Beth in excitement."

"She said yes to the match!"

"That's great! When are we having the match? Is it going to be at a house show or…?"

"Even better, it's going to be the main event on next week's SmackDown!"

"You're kidding me right?" Beth asked disbelief painted all over her face.

"For once, I am not kidding. The main event was Stephanie's idea after some derogatory comments that Randy made towards the Divas division."

"Wait, why was Randy there? Did he hurt you? God, I had a feeling that I should have gone with you!"

"Beth, it's okay. He didn't hurt me, although he did corner me when I left Wade's locker room."

Beth opened her mouth to ask more questions, but Natalya had her well scouted. She knew exactly what she was going to ask.

"Randy said he wanted to talk, so I told him he had five minutes. Instead of getting to the point, he flipped his jealously lid and demanded to know why I was talking to Wade."

Natalya spent the next ten to fifteen minutes telling Beth about her encounter with her ex-boyfriend. She had to stop every now and then to answer Beth's questions. Beth just sat on the bench, in awe of the situation that unfolded.

"So what happened when you were in Stephanie's office with him?"

Looking down at her cellphone, Natalya was shocked by the time. Was it really already eleven thirty? She still had to go back to the hotel, shower, and get ready!

"I'll tell you when we go out. That way I don't have to tell the story more than once."

"What are you talking about?" Beth asked, a wondering look crossing her face.

"Oh yea, I invited Wade to come along with us. We're supposed to meet him in the hotel lobby in an hour."

"Well then, we had better get going!"

Beth grabbed her bag before handing Natalya her own and walked out of the locker room and arena with her best friend.


	8. Chapter 8

"Nattie, hurry your ass up! We were supposed to meet Wade downstairs five minutes ago!" Beth hollered as she paced around the hotel room that they were sharing.

"I'm almost done. Just give me another minute or two." Natalya hollered back as she applied a layer of sheer lip gloss.

Beth scoffed, hearing that line many times before. Finally finding the right pair of heels for her outfit, he hunkered down on the bed to wait for her fellow blonde. When the bathroom door opened not to long after she sat down, she was surprised that Natalya was true to her word.

"Are you finally ready?" Beth asked.

"Let's do this bad thing!" Natalya said with a smile as she put a hand on her hip.

Once the two blondes made it down to the lobby, they scanned the room for Wade. They located him over by the windows talking to a short-haired blonde man. Natalya cleared her throat and both men turned around to look at the two Divas. Beth gasped when she recognized the other man as her boyfriend Adam 'Edge' Copeland. Before she embraced him, she ran her fingers through his newly cut hair, in complete shock.

"I figured after having long hair for so many years, it was time for a change."

"You look great, but what are you doing here?"

"Well since you have been on the road for two straight weeks and have only been working dark matches, I really just needed to see you. I've missed you."

"Awe!" Beth and Natalya cooed in unison.

Beth then flung her arms around Edge's neck and laid a huge, passionate kiss on him. Wade looked away and caught Natalya's eye with an awkward glance. The look caused Natalya to smile and it made Wade's heart flutter slightly. It was then that he noticed just how stunning Natalya really was. Her hair was mostly straightened, but had subtle curls thrown in there as well. His eyes started to travel down to what she was wearing and he was stunned. She was wearing a pink halter dress that was accented with a black bodice that sparkled against her deeply tanned skin. The dress flowed down mid-thigh and Natalya topped the look off with a pair of black Louboutin's that gave her an additional four inch height boost.

"You look absolutely stunning Natalya." Wade said in his thick accent which caused the Canadian Diva to blush and look down at her feet.

"Thanks Wade, I appreciate it." Natalya whispered as she tucked some hair behind her ear and looked up into his eyes, hypnotized.

Finally disconnecting from his gaze, she turned her attention back to Beth and Edge, who were done sucking each other's faces off and were just talking. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Wade spoke up.

"Are you all ready to head out to dinner?"

As they all nodded in agreement, the three wrestlers and hall of famer headed out and climbed into Wade's black Escalade. With Beth and Edge in the backseat, Wade settled into the driver's seat, glad that Natalya was sitting to his right. After settling in and starting the engine, he reached over and grabbed her hand, letting his fingers entwine with her. With one last look in her eyes, they set off towards the restaurant. Once at the restaurant, they all headed to a private dining room and sat down. Ordering a bottle of wine, as well as their food, they settled into conversation.

"So Adam, how's retired life treating you?" Wade asked.

"Dude, you can call me Edge still. I mean I know I'm retired and whatnot, but come on! Retirement has been great and my body hasn't felt this good in a really long time."

"That's great! What do you do to occupy your time since you're not travelling around with us now?" Natalya asked.

"I've come up with my own training routine where it doesn't wear down my body as much as the way I used to train when I was still wrestling. Other than that, I hike through the mountains with my dogs, and just enjoy not having to run on fumes anymore. It really is great, especially now that Beth is in my life; I have someone to torture with the long bike rides through the mountains." Adam explained with a huge smile on his face when he mentioned Beth's name. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her in for a kiss.

Seeing how much Adam loved her best friend, Natalya couldn't help but feel envious. She had thought that Randy loved her like that, but it turned out that he didn't; he loved his booze more. Just the thought of him broke her heart. Feeling the tears start to well up in her eyes, she had to step away.

"If you all will excuse me, I need to use the little girl's room." Natalya said as she scooted her chair back and stood to her feet.

"I'll go with you." Beth said as she started to get up.

"No, that's fine. You stay here and catch up with Adam. I'll be right back." Natalya plastered a fake smile across her face as the Glamazon nodded and lowered herself back down into her chair.

Walking quickly towards the restroom, Natalya just barely made it before the tears began to fall. Making sure to lock the door behind her, she leaned against the counter to try and regain her composure. Looking at her reflection in the mirror, she began to wonder about things.

_Why did I let him treat me like that?_

_Why did I go back to him after the first time?_

_What did I ever do to him to deserve to be treated like that?_

_Was I never enough for him?_

_Was I not pretty enough for him?_

_Was I not thin enough for him?_

_Would he have rather had a Kelly like girlfriend instead?_

So many thoughts and question were running through her mind. Then one final statement made her instantly feel better about herself. Wiping the tears from her eyes, she knew that she deserved so much more than him. Reaching into her purse, she pulled out her makeup bag and began to touch up.

_I may not be a Barbie like Kelly, but I know my power and I'll be damned if I ever get treated that way again by anyone. I'll be damned if I ever go back to him. I deserve more!_

When she finished her touch up, she took a step back to examine her work. Once satisfied, she unlocked the door and walked out. When she looked up, she saw Wade leaning up against the wall waiting for her with a concerned look on his face.

"Hey, what's up?" she asked as she walked up to him.

"I couldn't take too much more of those two lovebirds."

"I completely agree, but then again you have to remember they haven't seen each other in such a long time."

"True, but they should wait until they get back to the hotel. Bloody hell!"

"Also true! So are you ready to head back and face them?" Natalya said with a good laugh. Something she really hadn't done in a long time.

"Sure, but first I want to ask you something."

"Okay, ask away."

"I saw the way you looked at Beth and Adam longingly. Then just before you got up, I noticed tears in your eyes. What's wrong Nattie?" Wade asked in a soft, calming tone.

The question made Natalya freeze. She really hoped that no one noticed, but she failed. Taking a deep breath, she figured it would be best not to lie and just tell him what was up.

"Just seeing the two of them together made me think back to when I was with Randy and made me question some things. It's nothing really, I'm fine and over it."

"Are you sure? Remember, I know how hard it is to be cheated on so if you need to talk or just let out some frustration, you can come to me."

"Thanks Wade, that's really sweet of you. To be honest, it's still a touchy subject and the best way for me to get out my frustrations is training in the gym."

"No worries, how about we go to the gym together in the morning and you can show me your methods."

"Sure that sounds like fun."

"Great!" Wade said as she grabbed ahold of her hand and they walked back to their table.

Once Beth saw them walking back over, she had a questioning look on her face. When she saw their hands together, her eyes grew large. Waiting until Natalya sat down, she nudged her fellow blonde under the table.

"What took you so long? I thought you fell in."

"The damndest thing happened, I actually did and Wade here rescued me!" Natalya stated her voice drenched with playful sarcasm.

"Very funny Nattie."

"I try."

Before Beth could press on any further, their food came out. They all took their time and just enjoyed each other's company. After an hour and a half of food, wine, and conversation, they were headed back to the hotel. Once Wade got everyone situated, he climbed back into the driver's side, since he only had one glass of wine then switched to water, knowing he would be driving back. It didn't take long to drive the short distance and before anyone knew it, Wade was pulling up in front of the hotel. Getting out, he handed the keys to the valet and went over to help Natalya out, catching her as she stumbled. Looking over, he saw that Adam was holding Beth up by having put her arm around his neck.

"Are you okay to make it up to her room?"

"Yeah, I think that I can manage. Just one thing though, what's her room number?"

"She's in room number 240. The only way I can remember is that Natalya mentioned that her room was exactly a floor above Beth's."

"Well that's convenient. We will see you two in the morning, or afternoon depending on how hung-over she is when she wakes up." Adam said with a chuckle as he slowly made his way over to the elevators.

Waiting to make sure they made it onto the elevator car okay, Wade tested to see if Natalya could walk. Of course she stumbled at first, but once she removed her heels, she seemed to be fine. After a few more steps, she stumbled again and almost busted her head open on a coffee table. Wanting to eliminate the possibility of future injuries, Wade decided to just carry up to her room. Picking her up bridal style with ease, he too headed over to the elevators. When they approached Natalya's room, he finally let her down so that he could open up the door. Just as he was about to put the key card into the card reader, Natalya put a hand on his arm causing Wade to turn his head to look at her.

"Thank you Wade." Natalya said quite clearly considering how much she had to drink

"For what? I didn't really do anything."

"For helping me take my mind off of Randy tonight. I really needed this."

"You're welcome and I'm glad that I cou-…" Wade started to say but was cut off when Natalya grabbed him behind the neck and gently pulled him in and kissed him.

Not wanting to break the embrace, Wade turned into the kiss and rested his hands on her hips to pull her up against his body more. The way that she was kissing him was causing his head to spin. Never before had he felt this way. Becoming so engrossed in having her lips against his and vice versa, neither one of them heard the approaching footsteps. All of the sudden, Natalya's lips were ripped away from Wade's as he was quickly spun around in the other direction.

"Dude, what the fuck are you doing?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?"

"It looks like you're kissing my girlfriend!" Randy yelled getting right in Randy's face.

"Oh I'm sorry, but I think once you screwed around and cheated on her, she stopped being your girlfriend. So why don't you carry on your little way and leave us alone."

"Wait; is that what she told you? That I cheated on her?"

"Yes, and quite frankly it doesn't surprise me. Now if you don't mind, we are going to bed." Wade said as she put a protective arm around Natalya's waist and went to unlock the door again.

"Like hell you are! I'm not letting you go in there." Randy spat and with that, he lunged at the Brit.

Reacting quickly, Wade maneuvered his body in front of Natalya to protect her and cold cocked Randy in the face. The Viper instantly fell to the ground with blood covering his face.

"Goodnight Randy." Wade said as he was finally able to get the door unlocked and carefully walked in with Natalya, making sure to double lock the door behind them.


	9. Chapter 9

Natalya awoke the next day in an all too familiar fashion, with a pounding headache. Carefully clutching her head, she made her way into the bathroom. Setting the dimmer lights on low, she looked at her reflection and was taken aback. Her mascara had caked her eyelashes together, her eyeliner was smeared and so was what was left of her lipstick.

"Damn, what happened after dinner last night?" she asked herself as she started to wash off her makeup from the night before.

A knock on the bathroom door about gave the Canadian a heart attack. She jumped about ten feet in the air before she could find her voice.

"W-who's there?" she stammered as she cautiously went to open the door.

Before she could open it all of the way, she heard his accent and instantly felt a wave of relief wash over her.

"Nattie, it's me, are you okay? I woke up and when I saw you weren't in bed I got worried." Wade said through the door and smiled when Natalya finally opened it all the way.

"How the hell did you get in my room Wade?"

"Um…I slept here last night. Do you remember what happened when we got back last night?"

"Not really no."

"I was helping you back up to your room last night because you were slightly tipsy. When we got up here, Randy showed up and started to run his mouth. After he backed off, I escorted you inside and I fell asleep too." He said, omitting the fact that she had kissed him and that he punched Randy.

"Oh well thanks for that. Uh…if you don't mind, I need to pack up my bag and get ready to meet with Beth to go to the gym. I'll see you backstage later."

"Yeah, I'll see you later I guess."

With that Wade, walked over to the nightstand, grabbed his shirt and put it back on as he left with a dejected look set upon his face. Closing the door behind him, Natalya leaned up against it and sighed. She had a feeling that Wade was hiding something from her. After that awkward encounter, she decided that she had to go straight to the X-factor. She needed to talk to Randy. Quickly getting her things together, she made her way out the door and headed to the arena early, knowing that Randy liked to get there early and work on his in-ring timing.

Within ten minutes, Natalya was making her way through the backstage hallways, looking for the stage. Finding an empty locker room to place her bag, she made her way down the ramp and towards the ring. Sure enough, Randy was inside the squared circle running the ropes. Seeing someone coming towards him out of his peripheral vision, he slowed down to a jog before coming to a complete standstill, letting his hands rest on top of his head. Climbing up the steel steps, Natalya could see the sweat pouring down his face, his chest rising and falling quickly, and then she noticed that he was sporting a shiner under his right eye. Ducking under the second rope, she made her way over to her ex-boyfriend.

"Oh my god Randy, what the hell happened?" Natalya asked as she reached out her hands to touch his face, only to have him take two steps back from her.

"Don't play dumb with me, you were there. I'm pretty sure you got a mighty good kick out of it too didn't you?"

"What are you talking about?"

"Last night outside of your hotel room, I caught you kissing that brute of a man Wade Barrett. When I tried to talk to you, he flat out cold cocked me and almost broke my nose."

"I still don't know what you're talking about. I had a lot to drink at dinner last night and don't remember anything that may have happened after we left the restaurant."

"Well maybe you should hurry up and ask him, his suspension starts before tonight's show."

"What did you do Randy?" Natalya asked getting right up in his face.

"Oh nothing, I just told Vince and Stephanie a total bogus story of what happened last night and they bought it. They suspended that douchebag for a month for "breaking" my nose." Randy said with a wicked smile plastered across his face as he sized her up.

Without backing down, Natalya quickly shot her hand across his face with a thunderous slap. Realizing that it probably wasn't the best idea in the world to slap someone with an anger problem, she quickly slid underneath the ropes and made her way backstage. Just as she made it onto the stage, she heard Randy yell after her.

"You are going to be so sorry that you ever slapped me Natalya! I'll make sure you get the same suspension as your new boyfriend. You can mark my words!"

Natalya couldn't help but to smile to herself; despite the fact that her hand hurt like hell, it felt good to finally give Randy a taste of his own medicine. Now, with her mind running a mile a minute over the new information she just received about last night, she was focused on finding Wade and quick. Rounding a corner a little too quickly, she shoulder checked her best friend.

"Jesus Nattie, where's the fire?" Beth asked after she caught herself before falling down.

"I'm sorry Beth, have you seen Wade?"

"Not since last night, but after the way that the two of you got so chummy last night, I figured that he would still be with you."

"You are the second person that has said something like that to me today. Seriously, what the hell happened to me last night?"

"I don't remember too much myself. Between me and you, the two of us drank a lot! But when I woke up this morning, Adam said that you and Wade were getting to know each other pretty well at dinner and then we went our separate ways. Why, what's going on?"

"Well according to Randy, Wade and I kissed last night, Wade then punched Randy and now Randy has gotten Wade suspended."

"Damn girl, I didn't think that you had it in you."

"Yeah, me either."

"So are you ready to hit the gym? I figured that we would hit the bench press and then maybe do some yoga to sort of relax before tonight's match." Beth offered, trying to change the subject.

"Yeah, sure but just give me ten minutes. I have to find Wade before he gets kicked off the tour for a month." Natalya said as she took off in looks for the Brit.

After searching in the most obvious places that he would be (the trainer, catering, the general manager's office, the superstar's locker room), she was just about to give up when one more idea popped into her head; the locker room where she walked in, not knowing that it was his. Making an about-face turn, she bolted down the halls, took the corners too quickly, and finally stopped in front of the door. Without knocking, she walked in and sure enough, sitting in a steel chair dressed in light blue jeans, a white t-shirt and a leather jacket with a steely gaze set upon his face was Wade. Hearing the door open, he looked up and let a small smile creep onto his face when he saw her standing there, but quickly let it fade away.

"Hey…"was all Natalya could squeak out.

"So I'm guessing that you have talked to Randy by now huh?"

"Yeah, I just heard that you've been suspended. I am so sorry that this has happened to you. I…I don't know what else to say."

"It's whatever; I'll be back in a month ready to kick his ass. But before I leave, answer me one question Natalya." Wade said as he stood up and sauntered over to the Canadian Diva.

"Yeah sure, anything."

"Do you really not remember what happened when we got up to your room last night?"

Knowing that the question was coming, she still couldn't form an answer, so she just shook her head instead.

"That's what I figured. Despite what Randy may have told you, I didn't initiate the kiss; you did Natalya. To be honest, I'm glad that you did, because I wouldn't have done it. But since you don't remember, I guess that it never really happened. I'll see you in about a month or so. Goodbye Natalya, take care of yourself and good luck in your upcoming storyline."

With one final curt nod, Wade shuffled his way past her and was almost out the door, bag in hand when Natalya quickly grabbed a hold of his arm. Turning back around to face the Diva, he was taken aback when she stood up on her tip toes to wrap her arms around his neck and pulled him down for a kiss. Letting the moment sink in, Wade's lips grew into a smile. When Natalya pulled away, she smiled and blushed.

"I will see you in a month." She said as slid past Wade, taking mental pictures of his stunned face as she headed towards the area's gym. It was going to be one long ass month!

****A/N****

Hey y'all, one quick thing…I have a poll posted on my page to get an idea for a new fanfic couple. So if you have the time, please feel free to vote, or PM me!

Thanks!

-Megan


	10. Chapter 10

Finally a month passed and it was almost time for the Friday Night Smackdown tapings in Nashville, Tennessee. Natalya is sitting backstage getting ready for her rematch against Eve. She had some serious butterflies fluttering around in her stomach; not just because of her match with Eve, but because tonight, Wade makes his return to the live tour.

Natalya was excited to see Wade again. Given that while he was suspended, they would text back and forth and they would see each other whenever she had some downtime. There was even the one time that he flew out and surprised her at the show in Indianapolis (he was sitting on the trunk of her rental car when she walked out of the arena). Wade was doing everything that he could to help keep her mind off of Randy, and it was working despite her having to see Randy on almost a daily basis.

Just thinking back to that night made her blush, so much that her hairstylist caught sight of it and asked her about it.

"What's with the smiles and the blushing?" Megan asked as she continued to curl the Canadian's hair.

"Oh, it's nothing," she replies, trying to hide her blushes again.

"Girl, you are so terrible at lying. How long have I known you? Thirteen…fourteen years? I know when you are lying and when you aren't."

"Okay, okay, fine. You got me all figured out don't you?" Natalya smirked back at her longtime friend.

"Yeah, pretty much. Anyway, get to your story already. I'm almost done with your hair."

"Okay, it's because of my rematch with Eve tonight. I'm just nervous because of what happened the last time that I went one on one with her. My ribs ache every time I think about it."

"So you are blushing because of who you are facing off against tonight? Is there something that you need to tell me Nattie?" Megan asked, jokingly.

"Megan Sue! I am not a lesbian if that's what you are trying to say!"

"I didn't say anything like that. You're the one who said that you are blushing because of your match with Eve. That usually means one thing."

"Okay, fine. It's truth time. I am nervous about my match, yes, but there is another reason as to why I was blushing."

"Sometime today blondie would be great," Megan said, slightly exasperated.

"FINE!" Natalya all but yelled. "It's Wade, he rejoins the live tour and I'm just excited to see him and I'm nervous about how things are going to go when Randy sees him."

"Why, what's going to happen when Randy and Wade see each other? I thought that the two of them were cool with each other?" Megan asked, turning Natalya around to face her so that she could loosen her curls a little bit.

"Oh, damn. It has been awhile since I've told you anything major. Well, how much time do you have?"

"Well, considering that the show starts in twenty minutes. How long will the story take for you to tell?"

"Definitely longer than that; how about we do breakfast tomorrow morning before heading to the next town?"

"If tonight is Wade's first night back, I'm pretty sure that you won't be awake in time for breakfast," Megan said with a stupid grin on her face, as she started on Natalya's makeup.

"Now you're the funny one, huh?"

"Eh…I try, but you know that I'm speaking the truth."

"I plead the fifth," Natalya says as she zips her lips and throws the key away.

"Okay fine, then just text or call me whenever you decide to roll out of those manly arms of Wade's and want to grab a bite to eat to tell me everything that has happened. I miss how close we used to be before you got all Diva's champion on me," Megan said with a sincere smile on her face as she swiped a little more eye shadow across Nattie's eyes.

"I will be sure to do that. Now I have to go find Wade, and catch up with him a little bit. I'll be sure to get a hold of you tomorrow morning. Just make sure to turn your cell phone on before you fall asleep," Natalya said, with a light punch to Megan's arm before grabbing her into a hug.

"I will, you just go out there and kick some ass."

"I always do."

Natalya jumped down from her makeup chair and headed off to her locker room to change into her ring gear. Once she was changed, she went off in search of Wade.

With every step that she took, her heart would beat just a little bit faster. It finally got to the point where the anxiety was too much for her to handle, so she started running through the halls.

"Hey Nat, where's the fire?" Beth hollered when she just barely avoided a collision with her best friend.

Natalya didn't stop to talk to Beth and just kept on running. When she was around the corner from his locker room, she started to slow down to catch her breath. With one final deep breath, she raised her fist to knock, but just before her hand connected with the door, it opened.

Wade was caught off guard when he opened his door and Nattie was standing there. His heart started to flutter seeing her and her smile, but then he remembered the conversation that he'd had with Vince and Randy when he arrived to the arena. In short, they told him to stay away from Natalya or his job was going to be on the line.

He had strong feelings for her, but was his dream job worth losing for her? Then when he was leaving Vince's office, Randy stopped him and told him what he feared the most. When he was away, Natalya had hooked up and gotten back together with Randy. It took all of Wade's will power that he had not to punch Randy or the wall.

"Welcome back Wade! It's really good to see you," she said as she took a step forward into his locker room. She was surprised when he took a step back, away from her.

"Thanks Natalya. It's great to be back," he replied without so much as looking up at her.

"What's wrong? Why won't you look at me?"

The faint sound of the Raw theme song started, signaling that the show was finally under way. Using that as an excuse to end the awkwardness between them, "I have to go. I'll see you around sometime," he said as he slid past her without so much as a backwards glance.

"What the hell has gotten into him?" she wondered to herself.


End file.
